I found heaven today. Well if not exactly heaven then at least heaven’s kitchen.
It’s a place call Cibus, a restaurant in the hilltop town of Ceglie Messapica about 85kms north east of Lecce.
This town is away from the coast in the hills. It is pastoral country – sheep, cattle, goats and the menu reflects this. No sign of fish or seafood. They take their meat seriously here and roasts are big. Every butcher has their own wood fired oven. You order your meat and they cook it for you. Pick it up, take it home and bog in.
If god eats in restaurants, this would be on his (or her) list. These pictures [click here] will give you a good idea of the feel and look of the town, the restaurant and the food . The best thing I can do here is talk about our food and one of the best meals I have ever had.
Wine: Beautiful bottle of Primitivo (red) from Puglia.
Antipasti (starters): fresh mozzarella balls; stracciatella - very soft, creamy mozzarella dressed with anchovies; cooked wheat topped with finely sliced capsicum and slices of cacioricotta cheese; tortino of artichoke and mushrooms; ricotta soufflé with broad bean puree; and creamy ricotta with finely grated lemon rind.
Primi (pasta): percettelli with chicory and tomato topped with grated cacioricotta; sagnapenta with ragu, ricotta forte, fried soft breadcrumbs topped with grated pecorino; and baked cooked wheat with truffles and topped with melted cacciocavallo cheese.
Secondi (meat): The menu is strong on meat and the adventurous (or traditional locals) can even have horse and donkey. We passed on the equine and asinine flesh and instead had braised rabbit cooked with tomato, olives and rosemary; charcoal roasted lamb and a side dish of smashed roast potatoes.
Formaggi: The cheese plate consisted of a big white plate with eight local cheeses arranged in a circle with a big puddle of honey in the middle. They were arranged in order from mildest to strongest with the suggestion we eat them in order and dip them in the honey. Some were a little challenging but all were delicious. There is a picture in the slide show. At the top left is a piece of very dark cheese. It is goat’s milk cheese and the colour comes from the mould used to mature it. If you imagine the strongest blue cheese you have ever tasted and then double the intensity you might get some idea how strong the flavour was. Wild.
Dolce: Warm delicate orange mousse topped with cake crumbs; almond biscotti; cooked ricotta, fig and coffee mousse; and slices of rich chocolate cake all washed down with a sweet dessert wine and coffee to finish.
This was as good a fine dining experience as I have ever had and the astounding thing was that the most expensive dishes on the menu cost no more than 12Euro ($AUS15) with many costing less.
Amazing.
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